Shuttle eye



July 7, 1942.

G. M. TEAGUE ET AL SHUTTLE'EYE Filed Dec. 10, 1940 I M. TEA sue Snventors Patented July 7, 1942 SHUTTLE EYE Giles M. Teague, Burlington, and Joseph Wheeler Freshwater, Mebane, .N. .0.

Application December 10, 1940, Serial No. 369,408

1. Claim.

This invention relates to an improved shuttle eye throughwhich a strand of yarn or the like is adapted to pass during a Weaving operation.

More specifically the invention relates to a novel means for preventing the strand from escaping from the eye during weaving, but at the same time being so adapted that the eye can be easily threaded.

Heretofore much difficulty has been experienced in properly threading shuttle eye upon the transfer of a filling carrier from the loom magazine to the shuttle. This difficulty has been partially due to the existing shuttle eyes which are equipped with a narrow slot extending the length of the eye and having a re-entrant or hook portion in the slot to prevent the eye from becoming unthreaded. While this re-entrant portion permitted the strand to pass therethrough during a transfer under perfect operating conditions there were times that it would serve as an obstruction thus causing the eye to remain unthreaded and the strand to become broken. Also, since the slot in many conventional eyes is open fromend to end, the threaded eye often becomes unthreaded due to the ballooning and vibration of the strand during weaving.

It is an object of this invention to provide a shuttle eye having a slot extending therethrough, said slot having spaced closure members, such as spring pressed balls for yieldingly closing the slot substantially at the points where the strand enters and leaves the same. By providing closure members at these points, the re-entrant portions may be eliminated and a straight slot provided. The closure member at the entrance point serves to prevent escape of the strand due to the ballooning from the bobbin; whereas the closure member at the point of exit serves to prevent escape of the strand from the slot due to the slack produced therein as the shuttle'first moves to the shuttle box on the lay of the loom.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated. other objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which- Figure 1 is a sectional detail view showing a magazine of a loom, a bobbin and a shuttle used in association with the improved shuttle eye;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the right hand end of the shuttle shown in Figure 1, and illustrating the shuttle eye;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the shuttle eye as it appears when removed from the shuttle;

posite side of the shuttle eye from the side shown in Figure 3;

Figure 5'is a vertical sectional view taken along the line 5-5 in Figures 3 and 4;

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional View taken along the line 6'6 in Figures 3 and 4.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the numeral [0 denotes a portion of a conventional magazine or hopper stand for a loom, said hop- .per stand having a shaft ll secured in the upper V filling carrier ll is shown in dotted lines as it of a set screw 25 is another disk 26.

tion. After the transfer, a suitable picker I9 is adapted to deliver an impact to the shuttle in a well known manner to propel the same to the left through the warp of the cloth which is being woven. Also secured to the sleeve l2 by means This disk is adapted to act as a guide for the strands 21 which emanate from the bobbin of yarn IT, and hold the strand in proper position immediately above the shuttle box so that it will pass downwardly in the desired manner into the shuttle eye upon transfer. The loose ends from strands 21 of the bobbins of yarn I! which are disposed in the magazine are wrapped around the enlarged spindle portion Ila, which is integral with the shaft ll.

When a transfer takes place, the bobbin of yarn I1 is moved into the shuttle while the shuttle is in the position shown in Figure 1, and when the picker l9 delivers an impact to the shuttle to propel it across the loom, the spindle Ila serves as an anchor for the end of strand 2! and thus causes the yarn to be unwound from the bobbin H as the shuttle moves between the warp sheds.

Heretofore, much difliculty has been encoun- Figure 4 is an elevation looking at the optered in properly threading the shuttle eyeswhen the lowermost bobbin moves from the dotted line position to the bold line position in Figure 1. Most shuttle eyes which have been heretofore provided have a slot extending substantially its entire length with re-entrant portions in the slot for preventing the strand 2! from escaping therefrom, once it has entered. Also there has been difiiculty in keeping the strand in the slot of the shuttle eye after it has been inserted despite the re-entrant portions, because the vibration of the strand is rather pronounced at times, thus causing it to become removed during weaving and subsequently broken.

In order to remedy the above-named dificulties, a suitable improved shuttle eye 30 has been provided which has a transverse hole 3| near the lower portion thereof through which a bolt 32 is adapted to pass for anchoring the same in one end of the shuttle. This shuttle eye has a slot 34 extending substantially its entire length, said slot being somewhat narrower at its upper portion than at its lower portion. At point 35, where the strand 2'? enters the shuttle eye, the upper portion of slot 34 is very narrow. Also at point 35, where the strand begins to leave the shuttle eye, the upper portion of the slot 34 is restricted. Between the points 35 and 33, the upper portion of the slot 34 is about the same width as the lower portion of the slot. It will be seen by referring to Figure 2 that the extreme right hand upper portion of the shuttle eye has a restricted gap 38 formed by spaced cantilevered members 41 and 43. This gap is a continuation of the upper portion of slot 34 and has substantially the same width as the restriction at 35. When a transfer is made, the strand 21 moves downwardly through restricted gaps 35, 36, and 38 and into the enlarged portion 34 of the slot and then the shuttle moves to the left in Figure 1, between the warp sheds to a shuttle box on the opposite side of the loom. During this movement to the left, the end of strand 2! remains anchored to spindle I la so that the filling will be drawn from the bobbin of yarn I'I. When the direction of travel of the shuttle is reversed by its being propelled from the opposite side back to the position shown in Figure 1, the strand 2'! doubles back upon itself beneath nose portion 48 to dotted line position 27a (Figure 2) where it emanates through an opening 39 in the side of the shuttle. The strand continues to pass through opening 39 in the side of the shuttle during the reciprocation of the shuttle until the filling has exhausted from the filling carrier.

Figures 3 and 6 show the path travelled by the strand 21 after the shuttle eye has been threaded and after one pick has been made by the shuttle. It is here seen that the strand passes from the slot 34 into contact with vertically disposed pins 49 and ll-and then through opening 39 in the side of shuttle it. When the strand 2'! is in the position shown in Figures 3 and 6, it is prevented to a certain degree from moving upwardly out of the slot 34 by virtue of a downwardly extending hook 45 which is integral with nose portions 41. This nose portion serves to cooperate with companion nose portion 48 forming the gap 38 previously described.

Although the hooked portion 45 prevents the strand from moving upwardly many times, it is not a sure preventer for keeping the strand from becoming unthreaded. Therefore, it has been found necessary to provide in the upper portion of slot 34, a ball 49 at the restricted portion 36, which ball is mounted in a bushing 50, said bushing 50 being secured in a bore 5! in one of the sidewalls of the slot 34. Ball 49 is preferably made of steel. A suitable spring 52 is disposed in the bore and tends to normally press the ball 49 out of the bushing. A ball pointed screw 53 is threadably secured in the other side wall of the slot 34 at a point opposite bore 5!, and the nose of this ball pointed screw is adapted to act as an abutment against which ball 49 is resiliently pressed to close the gap. Such a structure permits the taut strand 2! to move downwardly between members 49 and 53, into the lower portion of the slot 34 during a transfer operation. Members 49 and 53 also prevent the escape of the strand at gap 36 during normal weaving operations when the strand is vibrated and prevents the strand from escaping from the slot, even though it is permitted to move upwardly past the hook portion 45.

In order to prevent the strand from escaping from slot 34 at the entrance of the shuttle eye, a similar arrangement has been provided. This arrangement preferably comprises a steel ball 54 which is mounted in bushing 55, said bushing being secured in bore 53. A compression spring 57 is also disposed in the bore 56, one end of the spring abutting the ball 54 and the other end of the spring being confined in the bore by means of a screw 58. By manipulating the screw 58, the amount of pressure exerted upon the spring 57 and upon the ball 54 may be varied to thereby increase the amount of resistance offered to the passing of the strand 2! into and out of the slot 34. A similar adjustment can be effected at point 33 by manipulating the screw 53.

The eye 35 is usually made from a soft metal such as brass; hence the necessity of providing bushings 50 and 55 to house steel balls 49 and prevent wear. It will be noted that the shuttle eye 30 has a vertically disposed bore 33 at a point intermediate the restricted portions 35 and 33. At the point where this bore is located, the slot 34 is somewhat wider at its upper portion than at points 35 and 33. The purpose of this bore is to permit the insertion of a conventional tension device, not shown, for the strand as it emanates from a filling carrier and passes through the shuttle eye.

It is therefore seen that a straight slot, having no re-entrant portions therein is provided in the shuttle eye for permitting the passage of the strand. The reentrant portions are eliminated by merely having plurality of spaced yieldingly mounted closure members in the upper portion of the slot. This feature makes it easy to thread the shuttle eye and also prevents the shuttle eye from becoming unthreaded during a weaving operation.

As heretofore stated, one of the greatest difficulties encountered when using conventional eyes, has been the inability of the mechanism to guide the thread in the slot, because of the hooked or re-entrant portions between members corresponding to members 41 and 48. The present construction eliminates these difficulties on account of having spring-pressed balls and a straight slot.

In the drawing and specification, there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the appended claim.

We claim:

In a shuttle for battery looms having means for supporting a filling carrier therein, an eye secured in said shuttle, said eye having a slot therein through which the filling from said filling carrier is adapted to be drawn, said slot extending longitudinally of the shuttle in a substantially straight line and also extending vertically of the shuttle in a substantially straight line, with the slot so that the tension on the filling as the filling carrier is transferred into the shut- 

